US May Release Pollard to Extend Israel Talks Through December

After a year, the US-brokered peace talks in Israel and Palestine have gone nowhere. With the deadline set for April, just how much is it worth to the Obama Administration to extend the talks through December?

Enough to release jailed US spy Jonathan Pollard, according to numerous reports, as they are said to be offering Pollard to Israel in return for Israel making some concessions, including a partial settlement freeze and releasing a number of Palestinian detainees. This, in turn, would be enough for PA President Mahmoud Abbas to endorse the December deadline.

The Palestinians had been reluctant to agree to an extension, and even getting through the April deadline seems speculative after the Israeli government reneged on last weekend’s scheduled detainee releases. Pollard, who was given Israeli citizenship after being jailed by the US for spying, is a high-profile enough get for the far-right government it would likely give them cover to sell a partial settlement freeze, if only for a few months.

Israeli media hypes the chances of getting Pollard out of the Obama Administration fairly regularly, but noteworthy this time is that the White House, instead of offering their usual denial, are now denying any comment on the reports.

25 thoughts on “US May Release Pollard to Extend Israel Talks Through December”

This is clearly a dirty trick. They use Palestinians as the pawns it heir dirty chess game. Israel should not receive anything for their stoppage of building settlements on Palestinians' land, since it is illegal under the international law. Where are defenders of international law now. How come there is no threat of sanctions on Israel and especially Netenyahoo and his suite of gangsters? Where are "all options on the table" usually coming from Washington to all except the Israelis? Has this world and their leaders crossed the line of insanity?

CanuckBC,
Not a line of insanity – rather a line of decency. Pollard is a lying, untrustworthy sneak; I doubt that Israel or anyone would treasure having the guy. This is all just a case of a spoiled brat (Netanyahou) throwing a temper tantrum to get his way (which he doesn't give a damn about anyway). Why do we go along? Dirt stupid "Evangelicals" think that Jesus will come back to Airfield Jerusalem as soon as all of the Palestinians get cleared off of the tarmac

This is clearly a dirty trick. They use Palestinians as the pawns it heir dirty chess game. Israel should not receive anything for their stoppage of building settlements on Palestinians' land, since it is illegal under the international law. Where are defenders of international law now. How come there is no threat of sanctions on Israel and especially Netenyahoo and his suite of gangsters? Where are "all options on the table" usually coming from Washington to all except the Israelis? Has this world and their leaders crossed the line of insanity?

Jonathan Pollard is due to be released from prison on November 21, 2015,
to anyone who knows the details its hard to imagine how this became such a desisive issue, but i guess it just go to show that most people in america support israel, out of some emotional connection, rather than any knowledge of what is going on.
i think this is actualy would be a positive thing, since it would connect pollard definitively to the Israeli government rather than just the opportunist he was.
which would be a tacit admission that israel does spy on the united states.
and further, if pollard is exchange for Palestinian political prisoners, would imply that israel views the united states ad an adversary rather than an ally/mediator.
so f it let him get out a year early, but try and use the fact that he will be viewed as a national hero in israel, to reveal the chasm between israel and the united state's "national interest".

"Jonathan Pollard is due to be released from prison on November 21, 2015,"
to anyone who knows the details its hard to imagine how this became such a desisive issue, but i guess it just go to show that most people in america support israel, out of some emotional connection, rather than any knowledge of what is going on.
i think this could be a positive thing, since it would connect pollard definitively to the Israeli government rather than just the opportunist he was.
which would be a tacit admission that israel does spy on the united states.
and further, if pollard is exchange for Palestinian political prisoners, would imply that israel views the united states as an adversary rather than an ally/mediator.
so f it let him get out a year early, but try and use the fact that he will be viewed as a national hero in israel, to reveal the chasm between israel and the united state's "national interest".

Israel's version of "peace" is what happens after all their enemies, of which there are legion, are removed from the earth – mostly by the lackeys in the USG. Despite what Netanyahoo constantly whines, they are not interested in peace as the rest of the world knows it…yet.

I can't believe that there are any who seriously believe that Israel will comply with the "concessions" as stated above. How many times has Israel agreed to a "partial" settlement freeze only to renege within weeks? The US is being played, plain and simple.

The only way I would support any release of Pollard is if there were a "special team" waiting for him to get off the plane in Tel Aviv…to transport him to one of the CIA's official nonexistent black sites where they find out how healthy Pollard really is. Regardless, whether he is released early of when his sentence has been served, the USG should revoke his citizenship so he can never return to the US…ever.

But, bottom line, he should have been executed instead of having the US taxpayers support his sorry butt for the past 28 years.

An important fact that everyone overlooks is that Pollard wasn’t sacrificing himself out of love of Israel – he sold US secrets to Israel; they in turn sold them to others. He has deep loyalty – to Pollard. Israel has deep loyalty – to Israel. Maybe they deserve each other. But let’s keep this swap on a purely monetary level; let’s sell Pollard to the Israelis. It would be interesting to see how much they would pay for his lying backside.

Pollard's release would be a signal to Netanyahu that blackmail works. If Pollard is released, expect more such US concessions for the talking to continue while Israel builds "facts on the ground." Any "settlement freeze" will only be a moratorium on announcing new settlements while "natural growth" and "current projects" building continue. We've seen all of this before, several times.

End the talks now, also end all "aid" to Israel, Stop vetos of UN resolutions against Israel and Boycott Israeli Products. Israel Knowingly Attacked the USS Liberty killing 34 & wounding174 U.S. Servicemen even machine gunning life rafts put in water for Survivors. Remember the USS Liberty!!

I'll believe he took money, I don't understand why that'd be more significant than freely handing Israel e.g. tech secrets. If he sold to just anybody, that would be significant.

Just found out Pollard also had a connection to Paul Lohbeck, who was an important focus of Mary Williams Walsh's spiked WSJ story on US Media's (CBS especially) crappy reporting and downright fraud in coverage of the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan. She'd found a number of reasons (including a petty criminal record) to ask why CBS would give Lohbeck so much play.

In the shadowy world of international free-lance operatives, Lohbeck’s contacts included Jonathan Jay Pollard, … . In his court pleadings, Pollard called Lohbeck “a recognized liaison to the mujahideen” whose connections enabled him to gain access to U.S. classiﬁed documents. (Lohbeck denies having engaged in illegal activities with Pollard.)

It was largely through Lohbeck’s efforts that Abdul Haq appeared on U.S. television screens as a leading spokesman for the Afghan mujahideen, asking for more U.S. military aid and asserting that the Soviets were stepping up their aggression